BMW Confirms Some Details On New 8-Series

The car is scheduled to debut in June at the 24 Hours of Le Mans but to keep us interested, BMW has dropped the first official details on the all-new 8-Series.

The car has reached the final stage of development and will be in showrooms around the world by the end of the year.

The range-topping (excluding the M8) M850i xDrive will pack V8 performance with all-wheel-drive traction. The M850i xDrive is an M Performance model, so it gets a number of enhancements developed by the M division including a rear differential lock as well as sport-tuned suspension and steering.

This V8 is the familiar 4.4-litre twin-turbo unit but tuned to deliver 530 hp (395 kW) and 750 Nm of torque. This output is good for a 0 to 100 km/h sprint of around 4 seconds.

“The thing that always impresses when test driving the new BMW 8 Series Coupe is its adaptability,” says Markus Flasch, BMW 8 Series Project Manager. “Whether a driver expresses his or her wishes with regard to comfort and sportiness using the accelerator pedal or by pressing a button, the vehicle immediately adapts perfectly to each setting.”

Production of the 8-Series in coupe guise will start at BMW’s main plant in Dingolfing, Germany later this year. The coupe will be joined shortly by an 8-Series Convertible and an 8-Series Gran Coupe, and all three body styles will be offered in high-performance M8 trim. M8 versions will also come with a 4.4-litre twin-turbo V8 but with output hovering above 600 hp.